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Fred VanVleet has said that missing out on the playoffs last season was one of the lowest points of his NBA career. The 27-year-old was a key part of the Toronto Raptors team that won the 2018-19 championship. He averaged 14.0 PPG, 2.7 RPG and 2.2 APG while shooting 44.4% from the field. VanVleet also shot 40% from the three-point range, making things easy for the Raptors.
During the 2020-21 season, the Raptors missed out on the playoffs despite a brilliant performance from VanVleet. He looked in great offensive flow, averaging 19.6 PPG, 4.2 RPG and 6.3 APG. However, the Raptors had lost out on loads of players from the previous season, and looked well short of their best.
Speaking about the same in an interview with Josh Lewenberg of TSN, Fred VanVleet said:
"Outside of real stuff in the real world, that was probably the lowest point I’ve ever had, mentally, physically. Missing the playoffs, having to sit at home and watch other teams play, contemplating playing or not playing at the end (of the season) and celebrating getting a draft pick. We love (fourth-overall pick) Scottie (Barnes) to death, but five months ago I was like, why are we celebrating trying to get a top pick? That’s not what we’re about."
The Raptors finished 12th in the Eastern Conference last season. However, this season, Fred VanVleet will hope to turn around the fortunes of the team and lead them back to the playoffs.
How important is Fred VanVleet to the Toronto Raptors?
Fred VanVleet has undoubtedly been one of the most important players in the Raptors franchise for the last few years. However, this season the 27-year-old is entrusted with a much bigger responsibility, as he will be one of the leaders of the team in the absence of Kyle Lowry.
Lowry is arguably one of the best Raptors players in the history of the franchise. Filling his shoes will not be an easy job, but VanVleet has all the attributes to be an impressive leader. Speaking about being the bridge between the coaches and the youngsters in the team, VanVleet said:
"I’m translating it. I'm just trying to make it relatable… It's our job to just let (the young players) know that we trust Nick, that me and Pascal trust Nick, that OG trusts Nick and the coaching staff, then these new guys don't have a choice."
"Coach is such an outside-the-box thinker in terms of the NBA fraternity, like he doesn't really follow any of the traditions or guidelines that most coaches do, so I think that some guys maybe just don't know how to decipher it or how to take it. And I think that's the one thing I've been trying to do is just be the buffer and let them know we trust him and that he’s a little weird at times, but he won us a championship, so he knows what he’s doing.”
VanVleet will hope to put up some big numbers for the Raptors this season. However, if the franchise wants to have any chance of making a playoff run in a stacked Eastern Conference, they will also need the likes of OG Anunoby and Pascal Siakam to deliver big performances.
This will be the first time in almost ten years the Raptors will take the floor without Kyle Lowry. So it will be interesting to see how they approach games and manage to amp up the creativity in his absence.
Guess the Lakers players!
